If I read this correctly, the position of the automobile is relative to the weight of the automobile itself, not the weight of the individual person being transported; same for other means of motorized transport. The efficiency of motorized transport would look much worse otherwise. The purpose of the single-occupant automobile is to transport the occupant, not to move heavy chunks of steel.And that is the great beauty of the bicycle - the weight of the machine does not significantly add to the energy cost of moving machine and rider.

I watched all 5 of the episodes of Mr. Boal's presentation. One of the things he said was that the chart was misleading because the energy requirement for the bicycle did not include the embeded energy in the road _or_ the bicycle. To be fair, it is biased in favour of the car in the same way.However, it is relevant in comparison to any animal, or to a human being walking. It's easier to walk on a sidewalk, but a person can manage a rough trail on foot much better than on a bicycle.

@patty: that's easy, you use a recumbent bike. It is even more efficient than a standard diamond-frame bike (less air drag), and you don't need a helmet -- if a recumbent tilts, you don't hit your head on the pavement.

Kilometres cycled by Copenhageners so far today

Copenhagenize.com is the blog of Copenhagenize Design Company. Online since 2007 and highlighting the cycling life in Copenhagen and around the world.

40 years ago Copenhagen was just as car-clogged as anywhere else but now 41% of the population arriving at work or education do so on bicycles, from all over the Metro area. 55% of Copenhageners themselves use bicycles each day. They all use over 1000 km of bicycle lanes in Greater Copenhagen for their journeys. Copenhagenizing is possible anywhere.